ILHAM FROM THE BATHROOM

A whiteboard in the bathroom… That’s it!!



Lately I have been getting lots of new ideas – mencurah-curah macam hujan musim tengkujuh.

I would normally get the ilhams at these two places.

1. In the bathroom.
2. While driving my Perodua Kembara




And these ideas would compete for my attention, and I can’t remember them all.

So I have decided that I will soon have a whiteboard in the bathroom dengan marker pen semua (sebab PDA susah – nanti basah rosak lah plak)



And in the car… I think I have to go get one of those ‘get smart’ punya gadget yang sebesar pen yang boleh record suara punya…

Kenalah buat tu semua coz sekarang ni banyak sangat nak ingat benda… brader…

Come to think of it, why don’t I just have the meetings in my bathroom, opis dalam bathroom, semua dalam bathroom…




Now I understand why Malik Noor punya rumah kat Hong Kong tu bilik mandi dia (yes… with the toilet duduk tu) terbuka luas tak der dinding…

Ladies and gentlemen… tell me it’s not the beginnning of Suhaimi the Exhibitionist…

Nice people at Bank Islam

It sure was a pleasure conducting a business communications course at Bank Islam recently.

The participants are nice and funky.

To all of them, thank you and you are in my e-group. Will update you on the latest communications issues. Enjoy your pix below...

I'm now into fish!!!

I’m now into fish!!

Yes… Fish of the swimming kind, not what you are thinking…



It all started with a discussion on how to prevent us from being “pukaued” (yup… origin of the word = pukau. Meaning -- A state of being hypnotized by a shaman/medicine man/witch). And one way to defend youself, according to 'orang tua-tua' is by having a ‘puyu’ fish in your house (Now…you are not supposed to believe in this. You are supposed to believe in God the Almighty. Anyway… it’s all up to you)

And I went to a pet store in Taman Tun and bought an aquarium for the office. At our office, we now have goldfish, molly, DBKL, tiger barb and lots more… and of course, the mighty ikan puyu.



But the ikan puyu that we bought marks its territory with a very bad smell and makes the water murky within a day. So Shazwan and I, (see Shazwan’s pic below) decided to ‘donate’ the ikan puyu and ikan sepat to Kelana Square’s fountain.


Shazwan and Cyrus

Which means, now, our office is game for the shamans to practice their craft… Tidak!!! Gasak!!



Anyway, watching the colourful swimmers is therapeutic. And there's more!!!
I can actually see Naomi in a Karl Lagerfeld (see pic below and you’ll agree with me).



And also Amber Chia in a Nizam Ambia Haute Couture (see pic below… Right? Right?).




The aquarium is actually the birth place for High Fashion!!! Now I understand why Carolina Herrera's evening dresses look like Siamese fighting fish… And it means -- no need to go to those expensive fashion school? Hmmmm.

BTW Shazwan is planning to continue his studies on a part-time basis and has sort of decided to take up Communications. And after discovering the birth place of high fashion, I told him… “Baik ambik fashion designing, retailing, merchandizing and management. I jadi designer, you tolong market."

Just imagine -- Suhaimi Sulaiman’s Aquaria Collection, Suhaimi Sulaiman’s Sepat Collection, Suhaimi Sulaiman’s Gold Fish & Ikan DBKL Evening Dress…. Mampos Aku!!

And because of the sudden love for FISH, me, Mokciknab, Shazwan and Ian went to get another aquarium. Now our office has two and we will soon beat KL Convex if we don’t stop somewhere!! From fresh water to salt water fish… more inspiration for fashion!!

So I guess designers get their inspiration from FISH!! Well. designers... betul tak? Jangan nak tipu...



Talking about designers, last night, I had a great time working with one of Malaysia’s top designer Rizalman Ibrahim and his team.


Rizalman

We helped make Suraya Malik and Zaierif Yusof’s wedding reception at Mandarin Oriental a wedding to remember. Rizalman’s approach was “Simple Elegance” – tak payah pelamin berenda-renda macam nak rak.. Classic giler!!! Very nice...

Suraya is my buddy Rahmat’s cousin. When I emceed Rahmat’s wedding a year ago, Suraya was the ‘pengapit’ (BTW Rahmat is the guy responsible for bringing in the films that you see at GSC … Ask anything about films, chances are Rahmat will have the answer. He is working on his own film now… Way to go buddy).

Suraya = beauty with brains to match. She speaks French, Italian, English and some other languages. Well traveled, she is so organized and is already a great businesswoman in her twenties. She looks radiant on the cover of September’s Le Prestige. Her hubby Zaierif is equally charming. Very down to earth and funky.

Now back to the fish and designer gowns… What do you think? Look at the picture below of Mokciknab -- better know as Tengku Elida Bustaman and Sabrina. Imagine them in Suhaimi Sulaiman's Sepat, Haruan & Sembilang Collection... What say you?


Elida & Sabrina

Billi Lim, Tim, Shareena and Moi -- A Blast!!

When you have Billi Lim, you don't need to say a word.. Just listen and smile.

It happened this morning.

We had Billi Lim on RED104.9 FM's 7 o'clock slot and the session was fun, hillarious and out of this world!!!

We talked about what this country needs-- "Leaders who think outside the box".

We also discussed the 'tambah-tambah traffic rules', reality TV and more.

Billi is a genius -- one of those people who can see opportunties when many people only see chaos.



He is fun, cracks thinking jokes and makes you feel good about your 'flaws' and how to capitalize on them.

And right after the show we discussed lots of content collaborations. We will be coming out with lots of creative content soon!!



Visit his website at www.daretofail.com

Face Analyzer -- Veghy Integhesting

Went to Camus' Blog earlier and found out about www.faceanalyzer.com.

All you need to do is upload your pic and the 'system' will analyze your face.

I sent the picture below and got the following remarks (I know my friends will say...macamlah aku tak kenal mamat ni... dusta-dusta)



You are a long-term planner, diligent worker and avoid risk as much as possible.

You are of above average intelligence and have the ability to focus on tasks that seem unimportant at present, but can lead to greater things in the foreseeable future.

You are not keen to interact with others or make social connections.

You would rather gain material wealth before putting yourself in a position to be judged.

You are not confrontational unless someone directly opposes your intellectual beliefs.

You are highly concerned with your social status.

You are keen to avoid risks that could jeopardize your long-term plans.

You take a calculated approach to life, working hard to control all aspects of it in order to not leave anything important to chance.

You tend to be a perfectionist and quite self-conscious.

You sometimes wish you were less reserved and more like some others you see who are more bold and outspoken in social situations. But as much as you try to be like them, you cannot, because you care too much about the future to ever be comfortable taking risks in social situations.

There is a playful ghost in the office!!

I think there is a ghost in my office. No, I don’t think, I’m sure there is!!

If not a ghost, it’s a playful wondering soul.

Whenever we are alone in the office (me, Mokciknab, Cekem, Shazwan and Ian) there will be this strange sound of people doing the ‘paper shuffling’.

Last night, under Shazwan’s desk there was a 'crackling' noise from the waste-paper basket. I thought it was a cockroach but when I went near, it stopped making the sound. When I went back to my desk the noise started again.

Then I asked Ian if he ever experienced something strange in the office. He said “Ada, tapi I tak nak cakap kat orang lain, nanti dia orang takut”. And I asked, "Apa dia?", Ian said, “Macam ada budak kecik lari-lari kat bawah meja Shazwan”.


dear hantu,pergilah duduk kat tepi laut


OK, it’s time for me to assume the role of an exorcist. Yes, nak buat macamana? Somebody kena do the dirty job (This is better than cuci dishes dalam sink kat belakang opis tu).

But the ghost is actually quiet nice jugak, when I said “jangan kacaulah, orang nak buat kerja..” It stopped making noises.

Ha jawab tuan-tuan!!

Itulah dilemma seorang exorcist.

I need my monthly dose of culture

Yes..

That's why I'm going to the talk tomorrow at the Islamic Arts Museum.

The talk is on The Traditional Malay Textile and the Malay Aristocracy and also The Kutai House.

From time to time, The Islamic Arts Museum will have great speakers.

Come lar.. The talk starts at 10:00 .. And it's FREE.

The show at RED 104.9 this morning went well.

I had a good time with Ashran together with Tim & Shareena -- the morning duo. We discussed the rising inflation rate and how we can find opportunities in times of 'crisis/chaos' (not that we are in crisis lar... but during hard times). Ashran was a 'pro' -- macam dah lama bagi political speech kat some convention kat Dallas jer.

I talked about how my dad made my brothers and I pee in those orange juice containers so that our urine can be used later as fertilizers (yes, one part air kencing and 10 parts air basuh ikan and air biasa) for our kebun sayur.

And how we made money by selling our healthy and fresh kangkong, bayam and kacang panjang (thanks to the 'fertilizer') to the neighbours. Dad was a staunch supporter of Allahyarham Tun Razak's Buku Hujau project in the 70s -- Buku Hijau was about growing you own veges at home to combat inflation, tak payah keluar duit beli sayur kat pasar, jimat belanja.

Dad did very well in introducing the concept of RECYCLE to us kids -- tak payah belanja millions for media campaign yang belum tentu effective--- ooopss sensitive (Bercakap pasal recycle ni teringat pulak lagu Nasser Wahab -- recycle, recycle, don't let it go to waste -- something like that lah, with dancers on RTM pakai baju Sunny Ho yang bereben renda-renda kat lengan)

But I did not tell the listeners that my dad fell in the bathroom and the urine splashed all over him, coz he went to the bathroom without the lights on, coz nak jimat letrik... and lantai licin coz mom simbah detergent on the floor after washing the clothes -- tak sempat nak 'bilas'.

Next week, my buddy, Billi Lim (yes, the independent candidate who ran for Bukit Bintang, and yes, yes the out-of-this-world hairstyle) will be appearing and we'll rock this planet like crazy.

Wah... sibuknya kalah PM gitu

That was what some of my friends said -- nak buat macamana kerja bertimbun.

Projek ni nak launch projek tu nak improve, client kena servis.. oh tidak.. But yang bestnyer, I like all and seronok buat.. Habis tu komplen buek apo?

Malam i nak gi propose MCOBA.TV to MCOBA.
Esok conduct training kat Bank Islam.
Friday, jadi DJ kat Red FM.. Ashran Ghazi will be my guest -- who is he? Tune in to find out.

Saturday ni best, nak pergi talk at Islamic Arts Museum -- jomlah -- the talk is on Malaysian (Malayan/Malay) Fabric and the Malay Aristocracy -- Jomlah... best.

It's FREE

Let's meet there..

Mohsein are you going?
Nisry are you going?

On Monday, my students presented their term project. Topiknyer -- Challenges in producing content 5 years from now with state of the art technology.

Ada yang amat original dan best.

Ada yang hanjing macam ueekkkk.. Copy paste from some stupid speech by some stupid pundit. Dia ingat aku bodoh? Aku tahulah speech siapa tu... oh tidak...

Overall.. I was looking for the spark yang will ensure content masa depan menarik dan mangajak orang berfikir.. Out of 10 adalah 3 orang -- oklah tu...

And I discovered Wangsa maju's best kept secret -- Nasi Lemak Ikan Masin Sharifah kat Projet Wangsa Maju -- I makan 3 bungkus.

GUEST HOST ON RED 104.9 FM

It’s official now.

Starting this Friday, September 9, 2005, I’ll be a ‘guest host’ on Red 104.9 with Tim and Shareena. My slot will be from 7 am to 8 am on Fridays.

What will I be talking about? News and Current Affairs – for this Friday, we will be discussing what you and me the ‘small’ people can do to help prepare the country and the world for some unforeseen disasters.

Over the past two weeks, we have been reading headlines on the havoc created by many major natural disater (read: failure of the US in managing the crisis brough about by hurricane Katrina, typhoon Nabi causing floods and landslides, paralysing transport and prompting officials to tell more than 100 000 people to flee their homes in Japan and the damages and deaths caused by typhoon Talim in China.)

We’ll look at knowledge management, logistics, sourcing food supplies, distribution and most of all leadership in times of crisis.

If you have suggestions for the coming weeks, feel free to send me topics and I’ll tell the world that the idea is yours.

TAMPARAN KATRINA DAN PENGURUSAN KRISIS DI AMERIKA

Rupa-rupanya Amerika tidaklah sehebat yang disangkakan kerana Katrina telah sedikit sebanyak menginsafkan kuasa besar itu.

Kita tangisi lebih 10,000 ribu nyawa yang terkorban – dan menurut media Amerika lebih 10,000 nyawa yang hilang itu adalah “Thrown People” (mereka yang miskin dan kebanyakannya berkulit hitam yang tidak mampu dan berupaya menyelamatkan diri kerana tidak info-savvy dan resourceful).

Kita bersimpati dengan penderitaan mereka kini dan masa terdekat.

Bagaimana pun kelemahan pengurusan krisis Amerika amat terserlah kini.

Akhbar Daily Mail UK menganggap malapetaka yang dibawa oleh Katrina sebagai “The Humbling of a Superpower.

Pemimpin Kebebasan Sivil Amerika Jesse Jackson telah dilaporkan sebagai berkata, “The government had been grossly insensitive to the needs of New Orleans' poor. We've sent our National Guard, our helicopters, our resources to secure Baghdad and manufacture a democracy, but leaving New Orleans vulnerable".

Mari kita lihat masalahnya:

Pertama:

Ketua negara mestilah orang pertama dilihat berada di tempat kejadian – tidak kiralah darurat besar atau masalah remeh. Jika tidak jangan jadi ketua!

Bagaimanapun, media Amerika melaporkan President Bush yang bercuti memendekkan cutinya dan melawat New Orleans selepas empat hari kejadian berlaku.

Pengajarannya: Dalam darurat jangan sekali-kali sebut perkataan “sedang bercuti, atau memendekkan cuti” kerana ia satu luxury yang akan menimbulkan kemarahan kerana orang lain menderita dan 'dia' sedang bercuti. Mengapa terlalu lambat pergi melawat? Kerana terlalu sibuk mencatur pelan untuk menakluk dan mengongkong negara lain, lebih-lebih lagi negara yang mengeluarkan minyak? Hmmmm…

Laporan khas Guardian Unlimited menyebut 35% anggota National Guard Louisiana kini berkhidmat di Iraq. Mungkin itu sebabnya laman sendiri tidak terjaga kerana tamak dan mahukan minyak di laman dan kampong orang lain (read: Iraq, Saudi Arabia, etc).

Apa pun, permandangan di New Orleans seakan sama dengan Baghdad bak kata Guardian Unlimited “National Guard recruiting is down because people fear being sent to Iraq. The priority given to law and order seems a troubling inverse reflection of what happened after the fall of Baghdad. Is it really more important to use deadly force against looters than to deliver humanitarian aid effectively?”... Fikirkan…

Kedua:

Rakyat Amerika mati kelaparan dan tiada bekalan air bersih.

Pengajarannya: Amerika kaya dengan pelbagai peralatan tentera (kapalterbang canggih, helikopter laju etc…) tetapi tidak ada pun ‘jentera’ ini yang digunakan untuk menggugurkan makanan kepada mereka yang terkandas di kawasan luar bandar. Salahnya – “Authorising Committee”nya lembab. Bagaimanapun Amerika efficient dan cepat dalam membuat keputusan menyerang negara lain. Adakah Amerika juga mempunyai sindrom orang bawahan ketua yang tidak berfikir (read: yes man) yang cuma mengikut arahan dan tidak berfikir secara strategik. Kalau benar… jahanamlah negara maju itu. Kalau dilihat semula memang ada kebenarannya. Banyak organisasi (not just in America but kat Malaysia pun) suka mengambil orang yang tak berapa cekap berfikir secara strategik kerana takut nanti lawan tokey. Tapi bila berlaku krisis tokey juga yang susah untuk berdepan stakeholders sebab subordinatesnya 'cannot' think. Pengajaranya? Sendiri kena tahulah… Unless we are herders, hunters and gatheres.


Ketiga:

FEMA atau Federal Emergency Management Agency telah dibelasah hebat oleh wartawan CNN semalam. Pengarahnya memberitahu CNN, FEMA cuma mendapat informasi tentang ramai rakyat Amerika yang terkandas pada hari ketiga kejadian dan sedang membantu memberi bekalan makanan melalui komiti-komitinya. Kerana kebodohannya memberikan hujah itu, wartawan CNN membelasahnya dengan berkata “our crew and reporters were there at the scene right after Katrina striked and we have been relaying information to the world. How can you say you didn’t know...”

Pengajarannya:

Jelas, knowledge management dan berkomunikasi dengan media teramat amatur bagi sebuah superpower. Juga, tak perlu ada committee khas bila berlaku bencana kerana struktur asal seharusnya sudah boleh mengatasi masalah. Ini... Sendiri kena tahulah..